Five things you didn't know about Eddie Dawkins

New Zealand track cyclist Eddie Dawkins is training for this year's Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. This week the Invercargill athlete has been named Cycling New Zealand's Face of Cycling 2015.

Here are five things you might not know about Eddie.

1. Eddie owns a Harley Davidson.

A 2012 Softail Standard, to be precise.

2. He's spent more than 24 hours on the tattoo table.

Eddie's arms and chest are a work of art. The phrase you can see in this Instagram post is Latin for "In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost".

His designs also include Maori patterns, roses, a 'Day of the Dead' skull, and the phrase 'Nil Desperandum' which translates to 'Never Despair'. It's a quote from his father and one he holds close.

3. If Eddie could live in another time he'd be a British gangster after World War I.

Guns and knives, fixing horse races, shady alliances - all in a day's work for a 1920s criminal. Television drama series Peaky Blinders is a particular favourite of the cyclist's.

4. When Eddie was 15 he cycled into a parked car and broke his knee cap.

Thankfully the Olympic athlete isn't so accident prone these days. That said, he was caught in a nasty crash in Manchester in 2011 and spent time in hospital having pieces of the velodrome track removed from his skin.

5. He drinks a four-shot coffee every day.

That's a lot of caffeine! Hamilton brand Rocket Coffee is his favourite.

Article and photo courtesy Stuff

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